John 21:23

Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die: yet Jesus said not unto him, He shall not die; but, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?

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Word by word — the Greek

Word	Greek	Strong’s	Meaning
Then	οὖν oun	G3767	(adverbially) certainly · conjunction
went	Ἐξῆλθεν Exēlthen	G1831	to issue (literally or figuratively) · verb — second aorist active indicative, 3rd person singular
this	οὗτος houtos	G3778	the he (she or it) · demonstrative pronoun — nominative singular masculine
saying	λόγος logos	G3056	something said (including the thought) · noun — nominative singular masculine
abroad	ἐξέρχομαι exérchomai	G1831	to issue (literally or figuratively)
among	εἰς eis	G1519	to or into (indicating the point reached or entered) · preposition
brethren	ἀδελφοὺς adelphous	G80	a brother (literally or figuratively) near or remote (m… · noun — accusative plural masculine
that	ὅτι hoti	G3754	demonstrative · conjunction
that	ἐκεῖνος ekeinos	G1565	that one (or (neuter) thing) · demonstrative pronoun — nominative singular masculine
disciple	μαθητὴς mathētēs	G3101	a learner · noun — nominative singular masculine
should	ἀποθνῄσκει· apothnēskei	G599	to die off (literally or figuratively) · verb — present active indicative, 3rd person singular
not	οὐκ ouk	G3756	the absolute negative (compare G3361 (μή)) adverb · particle — negative
die	ἀποθνῄσκει, apothnēskei	G599	to die off (literally or figuratively) · verb — present active indicative, 3rd person singular
yet	καί kaí	G2532	and
Jesus	Ἰησοῦς Iēsous	G2424	Jesus (i.e. Jehoshua) · noun — nominative singular masculine, a proper name
said	εἶπεν eipen	G2036	to speak or say (by word or writing) · verb — second aorist active indicative, 3rd person singular
not	οὐκ ouk	G3756	the absolute negative (compare G3361 (μή)) adverb · particle — negative
him	αὐτῷ autō	G846	the reflexive pronoun self · personal pronoun — dative singular masculine
shall	ἀποθνήσκω apothnḗskō	G599	to die off (literally or figuratively)
not	οὐκ ouk	G3756	the absolute negative (compare G3361 (μή)) adverb · particle — negative
die	ἀποθνήσκω apothnḗskō	G599	to die off (literally or figuratively)
but	ἀλλ᾽ all᾽	G235	properly · conjunction
If	ἐὰν ean	G1437	a conditional particle · conditional particle
that	θέλω thelō	G2309	to determine (as an active option from subjective impul… · verb — present active subjunctive, 1st person singular
he	αὐτὸν auton	G846	the reflexive pronoun self · personal pronoun — accusative singular masculine
tarry	μένειν menein	G3306	to stay (in a given place · verb — present active infinitive
till	ἕως he'ōs	G2193	a conjunction · preposition
come	ἔρχομαι, erchomai	G2064	to come or go (in a great variety of applications · verb — present middle or passive deponent indicative, 1st person singular
what	τί ti	G5101	an interrogative pronoun · interrogative pronoun — nominative singular neuter
to	πρὸς pros	G4314	a preposition of direction · preposition
thee	σέ sé	G4571	thee

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

Deuteronomy 29:29 The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may…
Job 33:13 Why dost thou strive against him? for he giveth not account of any of his matters.
Daniel 4:35 And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabit…
Acts 1:15 And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about an hundred and twenty,)
Job 28:28 And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on John 21:20–end

In these verses, we have, I. The conference Christ had with Peter concerning John, the beloved disciple, in which we have, 1. The eye Peter cast upon him (Joh 21:20): Peter, in obedience to his Master's orders, followed him, and turning about, pleased with the honours his Master now did him, he sees the disciple whom Jesus loved following likewise. Observe here, (1.) How John is described. He does not name himself, as thinking his own name not worthy to be preserved in these records; but gives such a description of himself as sufficiently informs us whom he meant, and withal gives us a reason why he followed Christ so closely. He was the disciple whom Jesus loved, for whom he had a particula…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on John 21:23

Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die--into which they the more easily fell from the prevalent expectation that Christ's second coming was then near at hand. yet Jesus said not unto him, He shall not die--The Evangelist is jealous for His Master's honor, which his death might be thought to compromise if such a misunderstanding should not be corrected.

Adam Clarke on John 21:22

If I will that he tarry till I come - There are several opinions concerning this: the following are the principal. 1. Some have concluded from these words that John should never die. Many eminent men, ancients and moderns, have been and are of this opinion. 2. Others thought that our Lord intimated that John should live till Christ came to judge and destroy Jerusalem. On this opinion it is observed that Peter, who was the oldest of the apostles, died in the year 67, which, says Calmet, was six years before the destruction of Jerusalem; and that John survived the ruin of that city about thirty years, he being the only one of the twelve who was alive when the above desolation took place. 3. St…

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John Gill on John 21:23

The Church Fathers

John underwent death, although concerning him there had prevailed an unfounded expectation that he would remain alive until the coming of the Lord.
— Tertullian, ON THE SOUL 50

Even John underwent death, although concerning him there had prevailed an ungrounded expectation that he would remain alive until the coming of the Lord. Heresies, indeed, for the most pan spring hurriedly into existence, from examples furnished by ourselves: they procure their defensive armour from the very place which they attack.
— Tertullian, A Treatise on the Soul

And observe, I pray thee, here also the absence of pride in the Evangelist; for having mentioned the opinion of the disciples, he corrects it, as though they had not comprehended what Jesus meant. "Jesus said not," he tells us, "that he shall not die, but, If I will that he tarry."
— John Chrysostom, Homily on the Gospel of John 88

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Galilee, Sea of — (Matt. 4:18; 15:29), is mentioned in the Bible under three other names. (1.) In the Old Testament it is called the “sea of Chinnereth” (Num. 34:11; Josh. 12:3; 13:27), as is supposed from its…
John, Gospel of — The genuineness of this Gospel, i.e., the fact that the apostle John was its author, is beyond all reasonable doubt. In recent times, from about 1820, many attempts have been made to impugn its…
Peter — Originally called Simon (=Simeon, i.e., “hearing”), a very common Jewish name in the New Testament. He was the son of Jona (Matt. 16:17). His mother is nowhere named in Scripture. He had a younger…
Predestination · 19:25; — 19:25;

Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).

John 21:23

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on John 21:20–end

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on John 21:23

Adam Clarke on John 21:22

John Gill on John 21:23

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

John 21:23

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on John 21:20–end

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on John 21:23

Adam Clarke on John 21:22

John Gill on John 21:23

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

John Calvin on John 21:20–end

Tyndale Open Study Notes on John 21:23